Most major European cities have a thriving entertainment quarter where a formerly forgotten land of warehouses and rundown commercial properties has been transformed. A few minutes watching the money pass over the till tells you music is business. And back from the bars, clubs and live venues there are small recording studios, music managers, graphic designers, and equipment hire. These clusters of small businesses have become the focus of attention for departments of state, economic development agencies and city councils. They are now officially part of the ‘Cultural Industries’, and it’s argued that it’s these businesses that can make the city more attractive to live in, that can expand in the declining, low rent areas, of the city and bring them back to life, and more fundamentally that they can make money and create jobs. They are seen as part of our post industrial future.
This post acts as a preamble to his 38 page report Making Money out of Music (PDF) which expands on these themes.
The Club was formed in January 2007 and exists to encourage the development of members’ photographic skills in a friendly and sociable atmosphere. Anyone with any interest in digital photography is encouraged to join, whether they are owners of compact cameras or the latest DSLRs, computer owners or not.
They also run regular field trips and monthly assignments. You can also see the work of their members in their gallery.
On Aug 7th they’re having an open evening “when the Central England Reptile and Raptor Rescue charity will be bringing various animals and birds from their collection for us to photograph”. All are welcome.
Dave Hart digests another impenetrable strategy document and throws out an interesting fact: “Stat Three: We’re growing faster than the economy as a whole. Hang on, that last one is kind of true but if you look closely you’ll find that growth in the creative industries is like a rollercoaster, sorry I mean its cyclical. Actually its pro-cyclical. When the economy dips we dip big-time and when it grows we grow big, big-time.”
Viggy La Q visits the Paula Rego etchings exhibition at the Waterhall Gallery and is impressed. (The BM&AG site appears to still be screwed though. Sort it out folks.)
If you’ve ever wondered what a test screening is like you can find out at the MAC on August 1st where they’ll be testing out Clubbed, a new feature film set in 80s Coventry. Email comms@screenwm.co.uk or telephone 0121 265 7120 for free tickets.
The Metal Symposium, which took place at the Walsall Art Gallery on the Friday of Supersonic, was quite excellent though unfortunately all the ideas and thoughts it generated in my head were smashed to pulp by the subsequent festival. Thank heavens, then, for this New Statesmen article where Daniel Trilling takes the themes and runs with them.
At the Walsall symposium, a group of tattooed, T-shirted men gathered to discuss the question in earnest. Nic Bullen, a founder member of Napalm Death, described his band’s low, guttural vocals as a form of “pure sound” that connects with listeners at a primal level. The music critic and artist Edwin Pouncey agreed, telling how, the first time he saw the ultra-noisy industrial metal band Swans play live: “It was like having the air pumped out of the room, so you could hardly breathe . . . It was scary, but the greatest feeling in the world.” Pouncey later expounded on the attraction of heavy metal’s grotesque imagery and lyrics, which draw from the “cesspool of human existence”.
I hope a video, audio or transcript of the symposium makes it out soon. I’d love to pour over it.
Karl Ferris, the father of Psychedelic photography, is holding his one and only 40th anniversary of the Summer Of Love Exhibition – The Karl Ferris Experience, here at St Pauls Gallery. Karl is famous for his album cover photography of Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Donovan and many other Bands.
Birminghamusic’s competition is to “find Birmingham’s most talented photographers within the music industry” and the scope appears to be pretty wide. Submission details are here.
At the Fierce launch party I noticed a banner by the entrance. It was about 5ft high and covered in the logos of all the agencies, sponsors and other organsations who had funded the festival. It stood as a testament to the work Fierce had done in making the festival possible but it was also mildly ludicrous. What was the purpose of this banner? Did anyone actually look at it in detail and take it in? Whatever, the launch was a lot of fun and festival was a big success so I guess it didn’t matter.
On Wednesday I popped along to the Rhubarb Rhubarb Light Sale at Curzon St Station, another great arts event put on with a not insubstantial amount of sponsorship and funding. Hanging outside the venue were two huge banners flapping in the wind, one of which looks like this:
A little over a third of the notice is devoted to logos, most of which are illegible from the street and hardly any of which are of interest to the general punter. Hewlett Packard I get since they’re in the photo printing business and local establishment like the MAC have some recognition, but most of them are insider brands. And, frankly, it looks pretty naff, not to mention ugly. There’s no denying the involvement of government agencies and private industry is essential to arts provision in this age but when did this obsession with cramming all the brands in one aesthetic car crash become the acceptable norm? What train of thought leads a sponsor to say, yes, you can have a substantial amount of money but we insist you spoil your publicity by including our cryptic logo? And has anyone done any research into what effect all this has on the general public’s perception of the event? I suspect it might be a little negative, tainting the work with the notion that it’s taking money from sick children or something. I know when I see the “Arts Council Supported” logo I have to fight back prejudices even though I completely understand the importance of getting that funding.
Since this is the creative sector we’re talking about can’t we be a little more creative with how sponsorship is declared?
The current issue of clubbing newspaper Night Times, which you can pick up at ticket outlets, record shops and groovy cafes, has a very excitable article about the Que Club re-opening (previously). Not much non-clubbing news (as you’d expect) but they do have some photos of what the hall looks like now. By the gods it’s a big space. I’ve also heard, by email, that they will be doing other sorts of events including gigs and performances so it looks to be an all-round venue. More news as it emerges.
Joe Holyoak is an architect and urban designer who’s site has been designed by Substrakt. They describe him as “very active in the political and practical arenas of architecture, conservation and urban planning, particularly in Birmingham” so his blog should be worth keeping tabs on.
Creative Republic “is the new representative body for the creative and cultural industries in Birmingham and the West Midlands. Created by members of the industry it seeks to promote the wealth of creative excellence within Birmingham’s cultural sector. Its membership will be open to all people working in the creative and cultural industries in the region.”
You will need skill, imagination, superlative communication skills, dazzling networks and the inside track on how to get things done in the city. The successful applicant has the opportunity to shape and develop Creative Republic, create a buzz around it and its potential and bring a focus and clarity to the creative sector in the City as never before.
Popped into IKON Eastside today at 68–70 Heath Mill Lane. It’s very dark in there. Very dark. Well worth a visit though.
There’s an event tomorrow:
Richard Wilson and Sean Dower
Twenty Pieces of Silver
Thursday 26 July 2007, 6pm – free
Twenty Pieces of Silver reunites Richard Wilson and Sean Dower, former members of the ground breaking Bow Gamelan Ensemble. They will perform a series of short percussive sketches in which sound, light and action are absolutely integral. Developing out of a process of improvisation and rehearsal in the studio, these brief moments build up, creating a loose sense of continuity and visual narrative.
Ale Installation is a show running at the MADE gallery on Fazeley St (map) until 2nd August. There’s a private view tomorrow (Thursday) at 6pm.
Pamela Ginn’s tribute to the real ale heritage of the region was developed in conjunction with the Festival of Xtreme Building. A mixed media installation, Ale recreates the sights, sounds and smell of the brewery through yards of tubing, a traditional cask and a hand pump through which visitors can pull their own pint of real ale.
Ale is designed to truly engage the viewer, and was inspired both by the artist’s desire to recreate the social interaction of the traditional public house and also by her wish to avoid the situation she has witnessed many times, where ‘private view’ audiences fail to interact with the art being exhibited.
The exhibition will be lined with photography from Highgate Brewery one of the oldest Victorian tower breweries in the country; a beautiful building that represents the pivotal role that breweries once had at the heart of the community.
I’m lead to believe there will be real ale, pork pies, cheese and Branston Pickle at the view…
Flip is an eclectic mix of all things animation. Based in the heart of the Midlands the festival provides a wide range of experiences from educational workshops for young people to experimental animation for grown ups; from industry led panels to feature film screenings and from international showcases and retrospectives of short films to spotlights on animation companies.
You can get a taste of what the festvial was like last year on this archived site an do the social network thang on their MySpace. The festival runs from 1st to 3rd November at Light House in Wolverhampton.
Laura, the Silver Footed Gig Slut Enthusiast, has spun off her invaluable gig guide to its own blog, The Tuesday Listings, updated every week with MySpace, etc links for every band.
Friends of the Stars have started a podcast. It’s as much a music and ramble show as about the band themselves but probably tells you more about them that way.
Creative Enterprise is a blog I’ve just discovered by Charlotte Carey who researches Creative Industries, Entrepreneurship, Gender and Diversity at UCE. If that all sounds a bit dry this post illustrates how irritating Charlotte finds that assumption. Nice writing.
